Apparatus for displaying advertisements.



Patented Jan. 28, I902.

No. 653L840;

H. W. CHINNERY. APPARATUS FOR DiSPLAYiNG ADVERTISEMENTS.

(Application filed Sept. 3, 1901.

(No Model.)

' UNITED STATES ATENT OFFICE.

HOWARD WILLIAM Cl-IINNERY, OF LONDON, ENGLAND.

APPARATUS FOR DISPLAYING ADVERTISEMENTS.

SPEGIEXQATIOH forming part of Letters Patent N 0. 691,840, dated January28, 1902.

' Application filed September 3 1901. Serial No. 74,148. (No model.)

To all whom, zit may concern:

Beit known that LHOWAED WILLIAM CHIN- NERY, a subject of the King ofGreat Britain, residing at 23 Charles street, Queens road, Holland Park,London, England, have invented new and useful Improvements in Appara tusfor Displaying Advertisements, of which the following is aspecification.

This invention relates to improvements in apparatus for displayingadvertisements, and has for its object to provide an apparatus whichshall show an advertisement in many colors either with sunlight or withartificial light, these colors varying vithihejpint of view of theobserver and also being, ifldgsired, caused to vary by mechanical means.

According to the invention I construct my apparatus of a suitable case,the front of which is provided with the advertisement, formed of glassor other suitable transparent or translucent material. At the back ofthe advertisement-plate and inside the casing I arrange areflecting-surface, preferably extending upward and backward from thebottom of the said plate at an angle of forty-five degrees,'the saidreflecting-surface being composed of a number of mirrors, preferablyarranged at an angle of ninety degrees with one another, so that thesaid reflecting-surface is of a zigzag shape in cross-section. The topof the case is provided with a multicolored sheet of glass or othersuitable transparent or translucentmaterial. With this arrangementsunlight or artificial light passes through the colored transparentsheet at the top of the case and is reflected and scattered from thesurface of the corrugated reflector, so that the light is projectedthrough the transparent advertisement, which thus appears to beilluminated in many colors. As an observer passes in front of theadvertisement the colors vary in infinite variety, owing to the mode inwhich the rays of light reflected from the corrugated mirror arescattered. In some cases I may provide for moving the colored strips ofglass,

so that in this way I am enabled to cause the colors of the illuminatedadvertisement to vary.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a sectional front elevation ofan illuminating advertisement constructed according to the invention.Fig. 2 is a transverse section thereof. Fig. 3 is a section on the line3 3, Fig. 2, drawn to a larger scale. Fig. 4 is a sectional view of theupper part of the casing, showing the colored strips mounted in amovable frame. Fig. 5 is a section on the line 5 5, Fig. 4. Fig. 6 is asection on the line 6 6, Fig. 4, drawn to a larger scale. on the line 77, Fig. 4:, also drawn to a larger scale. Fig. 8 is a sectional viewshowing a method of mounting the frame carrying the colored strips onsprings; and Fig. 9is atransverse section, drawn to a smaller'scale, ofapparatus formed with an inclined front and top.

a is the case of the apparatus, which is here shown as rectangular inshape, and b is a frame which is fitted in front of the apparatus-andwhich is provided with a glassplate. 0, upon which the advertisement isapplied-for example, by stenciling-so that the device or the wordsforming the advertisement are Fig. '7 is a sectiontransparent ortranslucent, the rest of the plate beingopaque.-

d is the back of the casing, which is made removable to enable access tobe had to the interior thereof. v

e is a frame which is fitted with the series of reflecting surfaces ormirrors ff, arranged approximatelyat right angles to one another, asclearly shown in Figs. 1 and 3, so as to form a continuous zigzagreflecting-surface behind the plate 0, bearing the advertisement. Thesaid framee is provided with pivots e e at its lower end, which pivotsare held in bearings g g, secured tothebottom of the casing a, so thatthe said plate can. have its angle adjusted, being supported in theposition to which it is adjusted by the legs h h, pivoted to the backthereof.

71 is a glass or other transparent top of the casing a, and j j arestrips of difierent-colored glass, which together form a continuousplate underneath the transparent platee' and which, as above described,allows light of different colors to be projected onto the corrugatedrefleeting-surface f and thence through Ithe advertisement-plate c. InFigs. 1 and 2 the colored-glass stripsj j are cemented together, so asto form a rigid plate, which is fixed in the top of the casing, asclearly shown. In the arrangement shown in Figs. 4, 5, 6, and 7provision is made for reciprocating the colored-glass strips, which areheld together by I strips of cloth or the like at their ends, so as toform two flexible bands 7; 71:, passing over rollers 7t 7t, fixed insidethe casing and being attached at their inner ends to slides Z Z, whichhave fixed upon them a series of colored strips 7' j,so that thisseries, together with the two lateral flexible series is, form thecomplete transparent multicolored plate. The slides Z l run upon rollersm m, pivoted to the front and back of the casing, and are provided withrollers m m to prevent them rubbing against the said front and back. Arack nis furnished upon the under side of the rear slide Z, whereby thesaid slide, and consequently the colored-glass plate, can bereciprocated by means of the pinion 0, mounted upon the spindle 0,extending through a bearing 0 provided in the back of the casing andhaving keyed upon the portion which projects through the said back apulley 0 adapted to be rotated to and fro from any suitable motor, sothat the said pinion, and consequently the rack and glass plate, can bereeiprocated.

p is a plate of muffled, ribbed, or similar glass arranged behind theadvertisement-plate c, the object being to more completely split up therays of light reflected from the reflecting-surface f, so as to producemore interesting illuminating eifects.

I sometimes arrange for oscillating the reflecting-surface from theposition shown to an upright position, so as to cause the advertisementto alternately appear and disappear. This can be effected by anysuitable mechanism, such as by a cam or connecting-rod actuated from amotor. Where the apparatus is to be fitted to a vehicle or the likesubjected to vibration, I can utilize this vibration to vary the colorefiects, and to this end I advantangeously mount the colored-glassstrips jj in a frame q, Fig. 8, and support the said frame upon springsq q in the top of the casing a.

In Fig. 9 I have shown the casing made with an inclined front and top,so that when the back is placed vertically against a wall or othersupport the front inclines forward at an angle. This form of casing isespecially suitable where the advertisement is erected at a considerableheight, as it enables the passersby to obtain a full front view of thead vertisement.

When my apparatus is placed inposition,the rays of sunlight or the raysfrom any suitable source of artificial light,such as electric lights,placed above the apparatus pass through the colored-glass strips jj andfall onto the corrugated reflecting-surface f f, which scatters the raysand causes them to pass through the stencil advertisement, which is thusilluminated with light of many colors, producing a striking, brilliant,and pleasing effect. As the observer alters his point of viewsay inpassing in front of the advertisement,or as the advertisement passes infront of himthe light effects are constantly varied, and with thearrangement shown in Figs. 4; to 7 this changing elfect is enhanced bythe reciprocating movement imparted to the coloredglass stripsjj.

Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my saidinvention and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare thatwhat I claim is- 1. In an apparatus for displaying advertisements,thecombination with a casing of an advertisement provided with transparentportions, a refiectin g device located in rear of and at an angle tosaid advertisement and provided with a plurality of mirrors arranged ina zigzag line, and a transparent multicolored plate above saidreflecting-plate, adapted to transmit light thereto, substantially asdescribed.

2. In an apparatus fox-displaying ad vertisements,the combination with acasing of an advertisement provided with transparent portions, areflecting device located in rear of and at an angle to saidadvertisement and provided with a plurality of mirrors arranged in azigzag line, a movable transparent multicolored plate arranged totransmit light to said reflecting-plate, and means for keeping saidmulticolored plate in motion, substanstantially as described.

3. In an apparatus for displaying advertisements, the combination with acasing of an advertisement provided with transparent portions, areflecting device located in rear of and at an angle to saidadvertisement and provided with a plurality of mirrors arranged inazigzagline, a transparent multicolored plate arranged to transmit lightto said reflectingplate, said plate being movable toward and from saidreflecting-plate, and springs supporting said multicolored plate,substantially as described.

4. In an apparatus for displaying advertisements,the combination with acasing, of an advertisement provided with transparent portions, areflecting device located in rear of and at an angle to saidadvertisement and provided with a plurality of mirrors arranged inazigzagline,a transparent multicolored plate arranged to transmit lightto said reflectingplate and a muffling-plate interposed between saidreflecting-plate and said advertisement, substantially as described.

5. In an apparatus for displaying advertisements,the combination withacasing of an advertisement provided with transparent portions,areflecting-plate pivoted in said casing, and provided with a series ofmirrors arranged in a zigzag line, devices for adjusting said pivotedreflecting-plate with respect to the advertisement, and a transparentmulticolored plate arranged to transmit light upon saidreflecting-plate, substantially as described.

IIOWA RD WILLIAM CIIINNERY.

\Vitne sses:

JOHN E. BOUSFIELD, G. G. REDFERN.

IIO

